Prophecies of Nostradamus
| Prophecies of Nostradamus | |
|---|---|
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| Directed by | Toshio Masuda |
| Produced by |
Osamu Tanaka Tomoyuki Tanaka |
| Written by |
Tsutomu Goto (story) Toshi Yasumi (earlier screenplay) Yoshimitsu Banno |
| Starring |
Tetsuro Tamba Toshio Kurosawa Kaoru Yumi Yoko Tsukasa |
| Narrated by |
Kyōko Kishida (Japan) Jack Ryland (US) |
| Music by | Isao Tomita |
| Cinematography | Rokuro Nishigaki |
| Edited by | Nobuo Ogawa |
| Distributed by |
Toho United Productions of America (UPA) (USA) |
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Release date
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Running time
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114 minutes (Japan) 88 minutes (US) |
| Country | Japan |
| Language | Japanese |
Prophecies of Nostradamus (ノストラダムスの大予言 Nosutoradamusu no daiyogen?) also known as The Last Days of Planet Earth or Catastrophe: 1999 is a 1974 disaster film by Toshio Masuda, inspired by the prophecies of Nostradamus. The film credits Toshio Yasumi as principal screenwriter despite his not being involved with the production. Instead, Yoshimitsu Banno revised his script for The Last War (1961) and Yasumi was credited out of respect.
The film is notorious for its rarity. After complaints from a "No Nukes" group in Tokyo, Toho pulled the film from circulation in 1980.
In 1853, Gentetsu Nishiyama begins preaching the prophecies of Michel de Nostradame using a copy of his book, "Centuries." When Nishiyama is executed by the Tokugawa Shogunate for supposed heresy (after discussing the arrival of "black ships" that will end Japan's long isolation), his wife and son flees with the book in hand, passing down the knowledge to future generations. At the onset of World War II, his descendant, Gengaku, is interrogated by an Imperial Japanese Army officer about the family's continued preaching of the prophecies, which predicted the rise of Nazism and the Axis defeat.
In the present day of 1999, biologist Dr. Ryogen Nishiyama is called in to analyze recent scientific phenomena, such as the appearance of giant mutant slugs, children wielding advanced abilities, and large ice packs just north of Hawaii. He is also a leading figure in the fight against environmental pollution, natural disasters, and the global arms race. The UN sends a research expedition to New Guinea to investigate a radioactive dust cloud that appeared over the island, but the team suddenly goes out of contact. Nishiyama joins a second team to find them and discover that the area around the team's last known position is now infested by mutant bats and leeches; one leech renders a team member unconscious and he later turns violently insane after the team sets up camp. He is sedated but is later feasted on by cannibals. The team fights off the cannibals and chases them to a cave where they find the remains of the original group, but are disheartened that some of them are barely alive; they are forced to kill and bury the survivors.
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